Mladenov receives COGAT letter, says suspension of private sector goods into Gaza is 'unacceptable'

Suspending coordination means stopping the arrangements used to organize private merchants’ commercial shipments into Gaza. COGAT said Gazan merchants had stopped coordinating with it, while Mladenov described the situation as a suspension following reports of threats and coercion. This affects ordinary goods, not necessarily every humanitarian shipment.

The practical mechanism is simple. Merchants normally coordinate cargo movements with COGAT, which oversees humanitarian affairs in Gaza. When that coordination stops, trucks carrying commercial products from Israel do not enter through the usual process. Nahed Shhaibar said no commercial truck from Israel entered Gaza on Thursday.

Humanitarian trucks still entered, and commercial goods from Egypt also arrived through an Israeli-controlled crossing. However, COGAT said the change could reduce total daily truck traffic to about 300, or half. Mladenov called for protection of commercial supply chains and new governance and security arrangements.

COGAT, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, oversees humanitarian affairs in Gaza and coordinates goods entering the territory. The private-sector merchants are Gazan businesspeople who arrange commercial products, pay suppliers and move those products through crossings. Their shipments include food and other goods that supplement aid.

The key mechanism is coordination. Merchants tell COGAT about planned commercial shipments, and COGAT manages or approves their entry. COGAT said merchants stopped coordinating because of a fee and cash-payment demand attributed to Hamas. Nahed Shhaibar, who heads Gaza’s private transport union, reported that no commercial truck from Israel entered on Thursday.

This is not the same as stopping every truck. Shhaibar said humanitarian trucks entered, along with commercial goods from Egypt through an Israeli-controlled crossing. The dispute therefore affects one route and category of supply most directly. Mladenov said merchants and supply chains must be protected from coercion and interference.

There is no single agreed figure for normal daily truck traffic. The article says diplomats believe far fewer than 600 trucks normally enter Gaza each day. Nahed Shhaibar, head of Gaza’s private transport union, put the usual figure closer to 300, with about two-thirds carrying commercial goods.

COGAT said the merchants’ decision would reduce the total number of trucks carrying humanitarian and commercial goods to around 300 each day, or half the previous level. That estimate implies a normal total of roughly 600 trucks under COGAT’s calculation. The figures differ because sources describe different baselines and categories.

The article also says Israel is obliged under a US-mediated agreement to allow at least 600 humanitarian-aid trucks daily. Israel says it must allow 600 trucks, while commercial goods supplement aid. The suspension therefore could sharply reduce overall deliveries, even though aid shipments continue.

Commercial goods matter because humanitarian aid is not the only source of food and other essentials in Gaza. The article describes commercial shipments as a vital source of food and other goods. It also says Israel considers commercial goods necessary to supplement aid supplies, even while allowing humanitarian trucks to enter.

The mechanism is supply volume and variety. Private merchants bring products for sale through commercial channels, while aid agencies bring humanitarian supplies. If merchants cannot coordinate shipments, those products stop arriving through the affected route. Shhaibar said no commercial truck carrying products from Israel entered on Thursday, although aid trucks did.

This creates a gap rather than a complete halt. Commercial goods from Egypt still entered through an Israeli-controlled crossing, and humanitarian deliveries continued. Yet COGAT said total truck traffic could fall to about 300 daily. Mladenov warned that interference with commercial and humanitarian supply chains would deepen civilians’ suffering.

According to COGAT, Gazan merchants said Hamas imposed a 10,000-shekel fee on every truck entering Gaza. Merchants also said Hamas demanded that 30% of all their sales in Gaza be conducted in cash. They reportedly stopped coordinating with COGAT in response to those demands.

Hamas gave a different explanation. It said the 10,000-shekel payment was voluntary, not a compulsory commercial tax. Hamas described it as a contribution by wealthy Gazans to a national fund supporting people such as widows and orphans. It also said cash payments were encouraged because Gaza faced an acute cash shortage.

The competing accounts produced a direct supply-chain disruption. COGAT said the merchants’ decision would cut total daily truck traffic to around 300, or half. Mladenov condemned reported intimidation and interference, while the article does not independently resolve which account is accurate.

Humanitarian shipments and commercial goods do not have to use identical arrangements. Humanitarian trucks can continue under the system governing aid deliveries, while private merchants can use another commercial route if coordination and crossing access are available. The article specifically identifies Egypt as an alternative source for commercial goods.

Nahed Shhaibar said humanitarian-aid trucks entered Gaza on Thursday. He also said trucks carrying commercial goods from Egypt entered through an Israeli-controlled crossing. At the same time, he reported that no truck carrying commercial products from Israel entered. These examples show separate routes and shipment categories operating together.

This alternative reduces, but does not erase, the disruption. COGAT said the suspension could lower total daily truck traffic to around 300. Israel says commercial goods are needed to supplement aid, while Mladenov called for protected humanitarian and commercial supply chains. The article does not say how much Egyptian cargo can replace the interrupted Israeli commercial flow.

A supply chain is the connected path that takes goods from suppliers to consumers. It includes merchants, payments, transport, crossings and market sales. Civilians depend on that path for food and other essentials. The article shows why both humanitarian and commercial links matter in Gaza.

For example, a merchant may arrange products, pay for them, coordinate a truck with COGAT and sell the goods after entry. If threats stop coordination, a fee makes the shipment unworkable, or cash demands disrupt sales, the truck may not move. The goods then cannot reach shops or households through that channel.

The article reports that no Israeli commercial truck entered Gaza on Thursday, although aid and Egyptian commercial shipments did. COGAT warned total truck traffic could fall to around 300 daily. Mladenov said supply chains must be protected from coercion and interference, and called for new governance and security arrangements.